The Role of Ecotourism and Environmental Awareness in Shaping Travel Behavior

The Role of Ecotourism and Environmental Awareness in Shaping Travel Behavior

Ashish Raina, Gaurav Bathla, Subhashish Mishra, Manish Kumar Malhotra, Varinder Singh Rana
Copyright: © 2024 |Pages: 17
DOI: 10.4018/979-8-3693-6819-0.ch011
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Abstract

This chapter offers a clear and thorough analysis of the mutually beneficial link between ecotourism & environmental consciousness highlighting the critical role that this dynamic interaction plays in promoting environmentally friendly travel behaviour. There has never been a greater pressing demand for ethical and responsible travel as the world faces more and more environmental issues. This study explores the fundamental ideas of ecotourism breaking down its complex elements and emphasising how it may support environmental education, community empowerment and biodiversity conservation. The chapter starts off by outlining the basic ideas that support ecotourism, highlighting its dedication to reducing adverse effects on the environment while maximising beneficial contributions to regional ecosystems and cultures. Further chapter also emphasises the significance of raising environmental consciousness among visitors, locals and industry participant highlighting the critical role that education plays in encouraging a shared commitment to environmentally friendly procedures.
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1. Background

Benefits to the environment, communities, conservation and interpretations are the foundations of ecotourism often known as ecologically responsible tourism. It is often used interchangeably with tourism to natural areas. Ecotourism's main objective is to allow visitors to fully experience nature and wilderness places without creating any disturbances in order to promote sustainable usage via resource protection, cultural revitalization, and economic growth and diversification (Gale & Hill, 2016).

Ecotourism involves a wide variety of stakeholders, each with its own interests and objectives. These stakeholders may be generally categorised as supporting actors (funders, researchers, and travellers) and key decision makers (forest and protected area management, local communities, the tourism sector, and non-governmental organisations). These individuals are essential to the operation of ecotourism, and the cooperation and consensus among these important players determines the outcome of every destination's ecotourism initiative.(Bagri et al., 2009).

Figure 1.

Sustainable Tourism

979-8-3693-6819-0.ch011.f01
Source: (Arora, 2016)

1.1 Introduction of ecotourism

Ecotourism is described as “travel that is responsible that preserves the environment & improves the health of local people” by the Global Ecotourism Society. Alternatively known as “nature tourism” (Kareem-onagun, 2023). The goal of ecotourism is to lessen the damaging impact that travel has on the environment. The goal is to integrate communities, sustainable development, & conservation via the use of transportation.(Koščak & O’Rourke, 2018).

Ecotourism is a relatively new kind of tourism that encourages ecologically aware travel to pristine areas with the aim of protecting the environment, enhancing local people' health, and educating visitors about preservation and conservation efforts. It is an all-encompassing approach to tourism that aims to minimise travel's negative effects on the environment while maximising its beneficial ones. According to the World Tourism Organisation (UNTWO), ecotourism is a kind of travel that has a number of characteristics (Marko Koščak, 2023):

  • 1.

    Any kind of tourism centred around nature in which the main objectives of the travellers are to take in and appreciate the natural environment and the indigenous practices that are common in natural areas.

  • 2.

    It includes instructional initiatives.

  • 3.

    Specialised tour providers often arrange it for small groups; however, they are not the only ones. The destinations' service provider partners are often small, locally owned companies.

  • 4.

    It reduces harmful impacts on the natural and cultural environments.

  • 5.

    It promotes the preservation of unspoiled areas that are popular with ecotourism visitors by:

    • •

      Producing financial gains for host communities, institutions, and government agencies in charge of maintaining natural areas for conservation:

    • •

      Providing local communities with other sources of income and employment

    • •

      Raising awareness among residents and visitors alike of the need to conserve natural and cultural resources

Figure 2.

Ecotourism as an Opportunity

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Source:(Moore, 2005)

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